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September 30, 2009

G158: Blue Jays 12, Red Sox 0

From the start, it felt like a spring training game. The Boston lineup began with Joey Gathright, Josh Reddick and Casey Kotchman. Rocco Baldelli made his major league debut at third base in the seventh inning. And third-string catcher Dusty Brown pitched the ninth.

The Blue Jats hit another four home runs, including two from Randy Ruiz, who also singled and doubled. Toronto had at least two baserunners in every inning but the eighth -- when they had only a solo home run.

Roy Halladay (9-3-0-2-6, 100) began the night by pitching five no-hit innings and finished with his second consecutive complete game shutout.

Wakefield (3-7-5-2-2, 76) and Manny Delcarmen (1-3-2-0-0, 19) both pitched terribly -- the hits off MDC were a home run, triple and single -- and did nothing to show they belong on the ALDS roster.

And for Games 158, 159, 160, 161, and 162, they rested. With five games remaining in the regular season, Terry Francona's only concern should be making sure every player on the roster is well-rested and ready to go when Red Sox begin the American League Division Series in Anaheim next Wednesday or Thursday.

You want to kind of get your legs back under you, but at the same time, you don't want to get rusty, too. It's a fine line. ... The last thing you want to do is kind of go into the playoffs and have to flip the switch. ... A day or two for everyone around here would definitely help. ... just a refresher.

Wakefield is making only his fourth appearance since the All-Star break. He is pitching on eight days rest. ... Halladay has a 1.80 ERA in five September starts.

The always-traveling Ofer was at Fenway Park for the first time last night. He nearly saw one hell of a comeback (and celebration). He wrote about his experience here.

Always traveling... till tomorrow. Tomorrow night I fly to Israel, for what should be at least a year. I'm starting school on the 18th (and hope to get many sleepless nights in my first two weeks as a university students.

In other news, that lineup is side-bustingly funny. Maybe the plan is for Halladay to break a rib laughing, then bring in all the regulars against the bullpen?

A few SoSHers are thinking this could be Wake's last start for the Sox. Assuming no playoffs for him, surgery in the off-season and possible retirement.

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and predict he'll have another good first half next year. And hopefully get to those 193 wins. Or maybe 192? We can start stacking up record holders right on 192. That could be fun.

About this -- Extra Bases cracks that "Yes, they are charging admission" to see this lineup. But, just having finished Allan's book, it brings to mind how much more important the live audience was as a source of revenue -- really the source of revenue. In 1918, I'm not sure you could get away with fielding a bunch of depth chart members like this.

I don't mean to keep pumpin' Allan's tool in public, but I just finished the book last night and really liked it.

I would be able to watch this had I not disconnected the cable for the slingbox yesterday!

Rogers couldn't get into the electrical room after hours to remove the filter on the line. Fuck it. Tomorrow at 11 I will have the goodness of TV. And Sportsnet East is showing tomorrow's game! And I don't think I get Bruins coverage so I'll be able to catch the game, FINALLY.

First game of ball hockey at 7 though so I'll be missing half of it.

Also Allan, when you posted that Torii Hunter article, I immediately went to the MFAA schadenfreude post to laugh at dancing Aybar.

When I returned to JoS headquarters, you had edited the post and put that image on it. That made me warm inside.

I don't like listening to Rish, and the radio guys do like to take it for granted that people aren't watching, but I get annoyed when I don't know what pitch is being thrown, etc. It's just "low" or someone "ranges over" etc. Blah.

It's funny, he doesn't get totally bombed. Just high pitch counts, wiggling out of problems with minimal damage, and all that.

Those believing Joba "should pitch the 8th inning!" have been rightly ridiculed since the value of a starter is so much more. But there is such a thing as a pitcher who's just well suited to relief, isn't there? I mean, isn't that why Papelbon's not a starter?

But there is such a thing as a pitcher who's just well suited to relief, isn't there?

Of course there is. For one thing, pitchers who do very well the first time through the lineup, then decline sharply on the 2nd & 3rd go-rounds. They're going to do much better in relief. Just as an example.

He emailed me a shorter version earlier today. I see that he changed "the toilet" to "Yankee Stadium" in the final version.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Just changed it back. I started translating everything into layman's terms, then realised that if I really wanted people who weren't baseball fans to understand, I'd have to explain what "run", "strike" and "inning" means, so I just said fuck it, let's JoS it up. I'm guessing most, if not all, the people who'll read it are JoSers anyway. Most of my 'real life' friends (if I have any left after being away for 2.5 years...) don't even know I have a blog, I've mostly advertised to travel friends.

BTW, it's amazing how effective a tool booing is. No matter what you want me to do, if you boo me for not doing it, I'll do it.